Notes

Conditions Governing Access

Advance notice required for access.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Manuscripts Librarian. Permission for publication is given on behalf of Special Collections as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Scope and Content

The collection is comprised of appraisal reports of properties considered for additions to or creation of new state beaches or parks or with respect to the Los Angeles County Master Shoreline Plan created in 1947. Reports contain market value estimates, physical and legal descriptions of properties, maps and photographs.

Abstract

In 1947 a property appraisal was conducted along Santa Monica Bay for the purpose of estimating the fair market value of various shoreline parcels selected by the Regional Planning Commission of Los Angeles County for purchase by the State of California. The report, accompanied by tract maps and photographs, recommended the purchase of the selected parcels of land to the California State Park Commission. The records in this collection consist of a detailed appraisal report, a set of parcel maps, and a book of black and white photographs with typed descriptions of the properties.

Acquisition

The collection is on long-term loan from the California Historical Society.

Historical Note

Southern California, in particular the greater Santa Monica Bay area, has long been renowned for its year-round pleasant climate and recreational beaches. As far back as the end of the nineteenth century, residents and visitors were already discovering the pleasures of beach-going, including natural and man-made amusements, camping, fishing, picnicking, etc.

After World War II, the population of greater Los Angeles boomed, fueled in part by the entertainment industry and--for the Santa Monica area especially--the aerospace industry. The promise of employment coupled with the sunny climate brought new home seekers to the west coast, where thousands of new homes and businesses were built to accommodate the burgeoning population. By the mid-1940s, the impact to lands along the coast led activist citizens and lawmakers to discuss and formulate a plan to preserve California's most valuable lands for future generations.

According to T.H. Abell's A Shoreline Master Plan for Los Angeles (1946, published online in 2007 by the Journal of the American Institute of Planners), the ocean shoreline of Los Angeles County consisted of 65.4 miles, not including the Los Angeles Harbor frontage. 11.66 of those miles belonged to the City of Los Angeles, and 10.2 miles of the city were in Santa Monica Bay--part being north of the City of Santa Monica and part being on the south side.

Since the late 1800s, residents and tourists had enjoyed the wide sandy beaches of the Santa Monica Bay, including the many piers and amusement zones created by Abbott Kinney and other enterprising developers. Gradually private development along the beaches--hotels, restaurants, homes, etc.--closed much of the beach to public access and use. In addition, off-shore structures and breakwaters had affected wave and current action, causing erosion to the point where shoreside buildings were undermined or destroyed. And though Santa Monica once boasted a thriving fishing industry, continuous development and increased population of the Los Angeles area contributed to a drastic decline in water quality as trash and sewage run-off ended up in the Santa Monica Bay. Though clean-water legislation and restoration projects improved the quality of the Bay's waters over the years, the Shoreline Master Plan for Los Angeles (1947) was one of the first formal attempts to address the issues confronting the area's shores and beaches.

Back in the 1940s, so much of the beach properties were privately owned that the public was being relegated to smaller and smaller strips of it and would eventually be excluded from the beaches altogether. To prevent this from happening, Los Angeles City, Los Angeles County, and the State of California began acquiring parcels of beach frontage for public use. The three agencies worked together to develop shoreline master plans which became the basis for future development.

The proposed plan was to transfer City and County beaches to State ownership, so that the State could then purchase adjacent frontage of equal value--and eventually the entire beach frontage would be State owned. The State would then lease the beaches to City, County, or other local governmental bodies to develop and administer.

Some of the features of the Master Plan included:

Continuous sandy beach, 250 feet wide

Continuous boardwalk, connecting all parts

Pedestrian underpasses to eliminate surface crossing of Scenic Drive

Public bathhouses and concessions at frequent intervals along beach

Picnic areas and play areas back of the boardwalk

Fishing piers for public use

Trailer and cabin parks for visitors' use

Yacht harbor

Bird sanctuary in marsh area south of Ballona Creek

The survey that was conducted before the details of the Plan were created provided data that was essential in calculating the needs of the existing and anticipated population. They included statistics such as "75 sq. ft. sand area per person", "3.3 persons per car in parking lots", and "50 per cent of visitors in private automobiles, the rest using mass transit facilities".

More detailed information on both the Los Angeles County Master Shoreline Plan and the Santa Monica Bay Shoreline Development Plans is available here: